Jagrutha Mahila Sanghatan (JMS) is a Dalit Women’s Collective of women agricultural labourers in about 30 villages in Raichur district which has organized itself for social, political and economic rights. Various alternative livelihood development programs have been started for the JMS women members, including neem fertilizer and biopesticide unit, herbal products unit etc.

One of these activities is the making and selling of terracotta jewelry. The terracotta soil is obtained from Bangalore. The jewelry is sold locally and in handicraft exhibitions across India, and sold under the name “Chiguru“.

Various watershed development including community mobilization for right to livelihood, right to food etc, leadership development campaigns and have been implemented, and they also have started a school for imparting non-formal education to the children of agricultural laborers .

To see some samples of the jewellery from Chiguru-JMS, please watch this video. Association for India’s Development has supported JMS’s initiatives in the past, and in the recently held Non-Profit Fair in Balboa Park, San Diego, AID San Diego had displayed and sold jewellery that were from the Chiguru-JMS programme.